CODAworx maintains a database of published projects, including many specific to commissioned works in commercial settings including Convention Centers, Entertainment Venues, Lobbies, Offices, Retail & Shopping Centers and Sports Facilities. A review of entries within the last 36 months offers insight into commission values in these settings.
It is difficult to imagine commercial spaces such as offices, entertainment venues and shopping centers without artwork. Those spaces would be boring, unremarkable and uninviting. With this in mind, commercial property developers use art to enhance communal areas, engage visitors, brand a location and create a fun and interesting vibe. Art becomes the medium for creating interactive experiences, inspiring positive emotions, teamwork and for motivating customers.
The CODAworx database contains commissioned projects occurring in the commercial settings that allows for a 36 month study period of August 1, 2017 to August 1, 2020. The data provides artists, commissioners, developers and architects with insight into the total, highest and median commission value of art installations occurring in these settings.
Commission Value — Convention Centers, Entertainment Venues, Lobbies, Offices, Retail & Shopping Centers and Sports Facilities
Commission activity in these commercial settings is summarized below:
During the study period, Offices accounted for the largest number of commissions (209), with a median commission fee slightly more than $200,000. The largest commission occurred in Sports Facilities ($15,000,000), but the total number of reported commissions is small (13). Commissions for Lobbies result in the smallest median commission ($96,454), but occur with a relatively large frequency (77). Sports Facilities and Entertainment Venues show the largest median commission values ($2,270,814 and $951,172, respectively). Total commissions across all settings in the Commercial category is almost $70 million.
Commission Value — Convention Centers
Commissioned artwork occurred in nine (9) Convention Center locations during the study period. Total commissions were $470,000, with the largest commission occurring in Barcelona, Spain. The project Google Touchwall ($250,000) was a sensory experience for viewers, showcasing current and future elements of Google Android interaction design. Typical of the median commission is Two Rivers in Turbulence ($180,000) in Pittsburgh, PA. The work depicts the Monongahela and Allegheny rivers as they flow into the Ohio River and is a key component to rebuilding the downtown center as a pedestrian-friendly city.
Commission Value — Entertainment Venues
Commissioned artwork occurred in 23 Entertainment Venue locations. Total commissions were $16,169,940, with the largest commission occurring at Mount Royal University's Bella Concert Hall (Calgary, Canada). Acoustic Panels ($3,500,000) called for the design, fabrication and installation of specially designed acoustic panels and structural steel frameworks. Typical of the median commission is Lost River Bar & Grille ($1,000,000) developed at a 30,000 sq. ft. multi story entertainment facility in Houston, TX.
Commission Value — Lobbies
Artwork installations in commercial lobbies accounted for 77 entries to the CODAworx database in the study period. Total commissions reported were $3,761,700. The largest commission occurred at Chapman University’s Institute of Science & Technology, Los Angeles, CA. With a budget of $500,000, the artist created an illuminated painting on laminated glass. LED lighting systems rotate throughout the piece with five colors. The piece celebrates the energy of the life-force in action while referencing ongoing threats to planetary ecosystems. The project 120 Clay 3D Graffiti Art, located in Portland, OR best represents the median commission ($96,454). Located in a large multi-purpose building, the client commissioned an art installation for the building’s main lobby. The hanging art installation is made with glass, capturing natural light to inspire and reflect spacial features. The work contains over 300 hand blown glass pieces secured individually with meta wire and clamps.
Commission Value — Offices
Office locations account for the majority of commissions (209) in the Commercial category. Total commissions during the 36 month period were $26,667,782. Rise of Titan has the highest commission at $6,000,000. An installation in Mexico City, Mexico, the work includes more than 3,000 luminaires installed on the 50-story building façade. Representative of the median with a commission of $200,000 is Earth Like, a permanent cubic shaped geode made of stainless steel, glass fiber reinforced concrete, and cast glass tiles. The work is in Houston, TX.
Commission Value - Retail & Shopping Centers
Retail and shopping centers account for 55 entries in the CODAworx database ($4,477,517 in commission budgets). The largest commission ($1,700,000) occurred with the project WIR, in Warsaw, Poland. WIR is the tallest sculpture in the city. It is constructed of steel and is a fusion of contemporary art with architecture and parametric design. WIR’s irregular structure beckons viewers to climb to the center’s highest floors, encouraging visits to more shops. Lacefence at the Mount Pleasant Woolworths in Perth, Australia best represents commissions at the median amount ($172,212). Lacefence is a metal fabric that interprets the common and mundane utility of cyclone fencing but adds handmade bobbin lace wire with machine-made industrial fencing. The bell-shaped jacaranda blossoms, leaves, stems and birds represent the beauty of the region. The Lacefence façade is the major focal point for the building on a busy intersection.
Commission Value - Sports Facilities
There are 13 entries in Sports Facilities settings, with commissions totaling $18,166,514. The largest commission occurred at the Chase Center, in San Francisco, CA, home of the Golden State Warriors. With a commission amount of $15,000,00, Chase Center Chandelier is a 69 feet tall, 15 feet wide, 20 feet deep assemblage of 20,000 individual LED pixels. The work is programmable, allowing for creation of different atmospheres catered to different events. It also serves as a large 3D video screen displaying generative visual programming as well as signage, and can even be extended into playing 3-Dimensional video. More typical of commission values in the category is The Ballgame at Washington D.C. Nationals Ball Park. Forty four baseball action figures are suspended from four motorized rotating armatures. The commission value is $225,000.
Publish Your Projects
CODAworx is a leading authority on commissioned art and maintains a comprehensive database of information regarding RFPs, commissioning entities, budgets, and awards. Tapping into this database enables CODAweekly to feature regular Industry Reports by design segment (commercial, hospitality, healthcare, etc.) that highlights top artists, trends in commission fees, and more.
We encourage you to add information to the CODAworx database by publishing a project to our Project Library or populate data on projects already in the database. Anyone involved in the collaborative process can publish a project on CODAworx. This includes the artist and creative teams, design professionals and other commissioners, and industry resources such as fabricators, engineers, installers, lighting designers, videographers, and more. Potential clients, commissioners, collaborators and your peers will get to know you and your work. They can contact you directly through the CODAworx messaging system.
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